Georgia baseball woke up this morning assured of an NCAA Tournament bid. So too did Mercer and Florida Atlantic. It was the Dean of College Baseball and his FSU Seminoles that were sweating.
The Georgia baseball team faces late-blooming Mercer in the first round of the Athens Regional on Friday. The draw could be good news or bad news.
No, it’s good news, and Georgia baseball head coach Scott Stricklin must decide if he throws his starting ace, Emerson Hancock, on Friday night.
Battling Bears
The Bears don’t look pretty on paper, claiming a modest 14 and 10 record in the Southern Conference. The pitching staff throws for a .281 batting average against opponents, sixth best in their league. Behind the pitching, the Bears’s fielding percentage is a rough .967.
However, while the Mercer team is batting .269, seventh best in the nine league SoCon, they have hit 70 homeruns. That’s good for 21st nationally.
While the draw looks nice for Georgia, these bears are on a five game roll, spending five days battling through the SoCon Tournament losers bracket to claim their NCAA opportunity. In the predicted 90 degree heat and high humidity, the Bears longball could be trouble.